Hawley 35, Cisco 31
Jagger Wiley threw for 240 yards and three scores and the Hawley Bearcats rushed for 190 yards and two scores as a team to hand Cisco an upset loss.
Hawley improved to 3-4 and 1-1; Cisco slipped to 4-3 and 1-1.
DISTRICT 2-4A DII WEEK 8 REPORT: Seminole pulls away from Big Spring; Snyder shut out by Pecos
Seminole 43, Big Spring 16 — Jacob Gonzales passed for 262 yards and three touchdowns, and Buddha Guerra ran for 140 yards and three scores to lead the Indians to a comfortable win over the Steers.
Guerra also received for 67 yards and a TD to help Seminole (4-3, 2-0) build a 36-2 lead by halftime.
DISTRICT 5-4A DII WEEK 8 REPORT: Glen Rose routs Hillsboro
Glen Rose 58, Hillsboro 7
The Tigers recovered from a lopsided loss to Brock with a rout of Hillsboro.
Judd Connally threw for 239 yards and four scores and rushed for 52 yards and three more TDs to lift Glen Rose (5-3, 1-0) to a win in its district opener.
DISTRICT 4-3A DII WEEK 8 REPORT: Jacksboro, Merkel and Holliday earn wins in Week 8
Jacksboro 38, Breckenridge 6
Sophomore Ryder Davis rushed for 114 yards and four scores and Hoytt Wesson threw for 230 yards and another TD to lead Jacksboro to a road win in Buckaroo Stadium.
Cooper Wimberley led Breckenridge with 128 yards passing and one TD.
Jacksboro improved to 6-1 and 2-0; Breckenridge fell to 1-6 and 1-1.
DISTRICT 6-2A DII WEEK 8 REPORT: Haskell, Munday, Windthorst notch victories
Haskell 62, Petrolia 32
Haegen Pinkerton hit 12 of 18 throws for 322 yards and four TDs to lead Haskell to a lopsided win. He also rushed 11 times for 209 yards and four more scores.
His favorite target: Brazos Brendle with four catches for 144 yards and two scores.
DISTRICT12-4A DI WEEK 8 REPORT: Stephenville, Jarrell set to collide after Week 8 wins
Stephenville 55, China Spring 21
Trot Jordan threw for 390 yards and four scores and Caleb Gleason rushed for 89 yards and two more TDs to lead top-ranked Stephenville (7-0, 2-0) to a lopsided win.
This sets up a huge game at Jarrell for the district lead next week.
DISTRICT 2-3A DI WEEK 8 REPORT: Sweetwater, Clyde, Compass earn victories
Sweetwater 32, Jim Ned 14
The Mustangs overcame a 7-6 halftime deficit with a 26-7 run through the second half.
Sweetwater (5-2, 2-0) tallied an astonishing 420 yards rushing (out of 430 total yards) with Kaden McCann gaining 340 of those yards to go with two scores.
DISTRICT 7-2A DII WEEK 8 REPORT: Goldthwaite, Stamford, Hamlin all score victories
Goldthwaite 56, Albany 0
The Eagles (8-0, 4-0) rolled up 456 yards in total offense to remain unbeaten.
Landry Sanderson rushed for 232 yards and five scores to lead Goldthwaite, which held Albany to an eye-popping minus-16 yards rushing.
GAME REPORT: Palo Duro takes control of District 2-5A DII race with impressive 53-10 win over Wylie
Photos by Carter Pirtle, PressPassSports.com
AMARILLO — Playing Amarillo Palo Duro with the top spot in the District 2-5A Division II standings on the line, the Wylie football team couldn’t keep pace with the Dons, falling 53-10 on Friday at Dick Bivins Stadium.
Trailing just 6-3 at the end of a first quarter that saw them kick a field goal for the game’s first points, the Bulldogs were outscored 35-0 over the middle two quarters in dropping 4-3 overall and 2-1 in league action.
Palo Duro (7-1, 4-0) stayed perfect in 2-5A DII play with the win, which saw them outgain the Bulldogs 435-106 and score 47 unanswered points from the 4:20 mark of the first quarter to the 2:00 mark of the fourth.
GAME REPORT: Cooper rallies for wild 41-35 win at Wichita Falls Legacy
WICHITA FALLS — Trailing 35-26 midway through the fourth quarter, the Cooper football team scored a pair of touchdowns in the final five minutes Friday to rally past Wichita Falls Legacy for a thrilling 41-35 win.
Joel Soto hit Matt Balvantin with a 25-yard touchdown pass to pull the Cougars within 35-33 with 4:55 to play, before Tayden Bender capped a nine-play, 94-yard drive with a 5-yard TD run to score game-winning points with just 1:03 remaining on the clock.
Bender’s touchdown run, which gave Cooper its first lead since the 3:02 mark of the first quarter, pushed the Cougars to 5-3 overall and 3-1 in District 2-5A Division I play — bolstering the team’s hopes of hosting a first-round playoff game in the process.
GAME STORY: De Leon dominates Hico 49-7 as Tigers shoot themselves in the paw
DE LEON — Through six games, the Hico Tigers had played relatively clean football, building a 6-0 record against moderate competition as a tough district slate approached.
Unfortunately for the Tigers, they picked the wrong evening to chart 11 penalties for 110 yards to go with two costly turnovers in a 49-7 loss to powerhouse De Leon.
Lane Couch rushed for 103 yards and two scores and Hud Price threw for 235 yards and two more TDs to lead De Leon (6-1, 2-0 District 5-2A DI), which led from the 7:50 mark of the first quarter until the final whistle.
GAME STORY: Amarillo High defense dominant in 24-14 win over Abilene High
Hosting Amarillo High with a chance to take sole possession of the District 2-5A Division I lead, the Abilene High Eagles lost the battle of the trenches Friday in a 24-14 loss to the Sandies.
That was particularly the case on offense, where the Eagles managed just 33 rushing yards on 30 attempts while quarterback Tristan Beal spent most of his night running for his life from a relentless Amarillo High pass rush.
For the game, the Sandies outgained Abilene High 350-117, building a 24-0 third-quarter lead before the Eagles tried in vain to rally over the game’s final 13 minutes.
GAME STORY: Bible’s big night propels Bangs to blowout win over Coleman
BANGS — While he didn’t set a career-high for rushing yards, Bangs senior running back Connor Bible still put together a memorable night as the Dragons rolled to a 53-10 win over Coleman in District 7-2A Division I play on Friday night.
Bible ran for 244 yards and five touchdowns and added a 32-yard reception for a score to lead the Dragons, who scored on their first seven possessions of the game — a week after punting seven times in a lopsided loss to Mason.
Bangs coach Colton Buzzard was proud of the way that his team bounced back from the 51-0 loss to the Punchers to start district play.
GAME STORY: Hamilton ignores even district theory with 42-7 rout of Clifton
HAMILTON — The book on the District 5-3A Division II football race is that the top six teams are evenly matched. The Hamilton Bulldogs threw the book out the window with a dominating performance during Friday’s 42-7 win over the Clifton Cubs at Kooken Field.
Hamilton dominated on both sides of the ball. Colton DeLaGarza ran for two touchdowns, and Ollie Summers passed for two scores as the Bulldogs’ offense racked up 470 total yards.
Not to be outdone, the Hamilton defense held a Clifton club that came in averaging 32 points per game to seven points and 184 total yards.
BCP GAME OF THE WEEK: Graham makes most of limited chances in 29-7 win over Mineral Wells
Photos by Kael Duncan
MINERAL WELLS — Graham made the most of its limited possessions Friday night in its district matchup against Mineral Wells.
Quarterback Cooper Corley threw three touchdown passes and the Steers took advantage of three Rams turnovers to claim a 29-7 victory in the Big Country Preps Game of the Week.
While a highly anticipated showdown looms against Brock in two weeks, Graham jumped out to a 22-point lead in the first half and coasted in the battle of unbeatens.
Graham improved to 7-0 overall and 2-0 in District 4-4A Division II play, while Mineral Wells (6-1 on the year) fell to 1-1 in league action.
VIDEO: Abilene High coach Mike Fullen shares thoughts on pivotal home clash with Amarillo High
AMARILLO HIGH (5-1, 3-0) AT ABILENE HIGH (4-2, 3-0)
7 p.m. Friday, Shotwell Stadium, Abilene
VIDEO: Cooper coach Scott Stewart previews Cougars’ road game against Wichita Falls Legacy
COOPER (4-3, 2-1) AT WICHITA FALLS LEGACY (4-2, 1-1)
7 p.m. Friday, Memorial Stadium, Wichita Falls
VIDEO: Wylie coach Clay Martin discusses Bulldogs’ key road matchup against Amarillo Palo Duro
WYLIE (4-2, 2-0) AT AMARILLO PALO DURO (6-1, 3-0)
7 p.m. Friday, Dick Bivins Stadium, Amarillo
Big Country Preps’ Pick ‘Em Panel (Week 8)
Each week here at Big Country Preps, we’ll post our picks for all of that week’s 11-man games and select six-man games, in addition to the results of our weekly fan polls for each matchup.
Disagree with our picks or the fan poll consensus? Let us know in the comments section below.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Graham, Mineral Wells clash in battle of unbeatens (w/ Evan Ren’s Big Country Picks)
LAST WEEK: 54-11, .831
SEASON TOTAL: 351-99, .780
Our Big Country Preps Game of the Week travels to Mineral Wells for the first time since we absorbed the Rams into our coverage area.
And why not? With unbeaten Graham coming to town to face the 6-0 Rams, this is one of the biggest games to take place at Mineral Wells in a number of years.
Zach Duncan will be on hand to deliver the game story for BCP in an atmosphere that should be electric.
Here’s this week’s forecast:
MIKE LEE’S WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Munday’s L.J. Collier marks 8th season as an NFL defensive lineman
Note: If you know of a former Big Country Prep athlete now performing in college or professional sports, contact Mike Lee at michaellee7@att.net.
Munday’s L.J. Collier is continuing his journey from a small town in Texas through a multiyear career in the NFL.
Collier has made his way from growing up in a Big Country town of 1,200 residents to playing Division I college football at TCU to the Arizona Cardinals, where he’s in his eighth NFL season as a backup defensive tackle.
Collier has played in all five Arizona games this season and made a season-high three tackles last week in a 45-21 loss to the Detroit Lions. He has seven tackles for the season and is listed as the No. 2 right defensive tackle on the Cardinals’ depth chart.
The 31-year-old Collier was a first-round draft choice of Seattle in 2019 and played four seasons with the Seahawks. Collier played in 44 games with the Seahawks, including 16 starts in 2020, when he logged 22 tackles, three sacks and two pass breakups.
AREA VOLLEYBALL STATISTICAL LEADERS (Through Oct. 14)
Big Country Preps is publishing area volleyball statistical leaders each Wednesday at 7 p.m. throughout the regular season.
This database will be continually updated for our subscribers throughout the remainder of the season, using only those statistics submitted by area coaches. If your team is missing, please give your coach a friendly reminder to check their email and submit their stats each week by 2 p.m. on Wednesdays.
GAME STORY: Abilene High volleyball secures Pink Out sweep of rival Cooper in final home match
The Abilene High volleyball team’s final home match of the season couldn’t have gone much better that it did Tuesday, when the Lady Eagles cruised to a 25-12, 25-13, 25-14 sweep of archrival Cooper in front of a packed crowd at Eagle Gym.
Playing its annual Pink Out match to raise money toward the cancer treatment of a pair of local women, AHS (20-17 overall, 3-3 in District 4-5A) seized control early and never relinquished it in clinching a season sweep of the Lady Cougars and securing a playoff berth with two regular-season matches remaining.
Sophomore Brailey Aston paced the Lady Eagles attack with eight kills, followed by freshman Alex Sanders with five, to help the senior group of Mallon Murray, Zia Gravitt, Elizah Willis, Miela Brown, Abigail Weatherby and Kate Breckenridge to a resounding win in their final match at Eagle Gym.
SIX-MAN REWIND: Area schools see mixed results as league play gets underway across Big Country
Week 7 featured a fair number of high profile games, both in and outside of district play. Unfortunately, our area schools came out on the losing end of several of the biggest matchups.
Water Valley dropped its first game of the year to unbeaten Menard, red-hot Newcastle was cooled off by Whiteface and Westbrook lossed a tough matchup to Lamesa Klondike to kick off a brutal district schedule in three of the biggest games on last week’s slate.
Fortunately, there were some triumphs as well — the biggest being Richland Springs’ big district win over Cherokee.
Without further ado, let’s dive into those matchups and more in our weekly “Six-Man Rewind” column. We hope you enjoy this look back at last week’s action, and encourage you to check out our Six-Man/Class 1A Central page for more information on your favorite team(s).
BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Haskell’s Pinkerton takes the trifecta
After only seven weeks of football this season, Haskell senior quarterback Haegan Pinkerton has put his stamp on our Big Country Preps Player of the Week award for a third time.
Believe me, we’d prefer to share the love. But with Pinkerton’s numbers, the teen has begun to turn this thing into a game of Monopoly, and he’s wearing the top hat.
Pinkerton, who led the Indians to a 92-48 win over Munday, hit 13 of 14 passes for 264 yards and five touchdowns on Friday. But that’s only the beginning.
WEEK 8 FAN POLLS … Pick this week’s 11-man winners!
Each week here at Big Country Preps, we offer fans the chance to pick the winners of all games involving our local and area football teams. The results of these weekly polls, which will close at 5 p.m. each Thursday, will be included in our weekly Pick ‘Em Panel.
Here are the games for Week 8:
Continue reading “WEEK 8 FAN POLLS … Pick this week’s 11-man winners!”
DISTRICT 8-2A DII WEEK 7 REPORT: Crawford, Mart and Wortham win as Santo takes week off
Crawford 55, Hubbard 0 — The Pirates followed last week’s win over Mart with another key district victory, bringing Hubbard’s two-game district winning streak to an abrupt halt.
Crawford, which now has the inside track for the district No. 2 playoff seed, dominated the game from start to finish in improving to 4-3 overall and 2-1 in district play.
DISTRICT 13-4A DII WEEK 7 REPORT: Gatesville, Robinson, La Vega win openers
Gatesville 62, Waco Connally 20 — Gatesville (4-2, 1-0) had an easy time with winless Connally (0-6, 0-1) in the district opener for both clubs.
The level of difficulty, however, is about to rise dramatically with unbeaten Waco La Vega coming to town next week.
DISTRICT 7-2A DI WEEK 7 REPORT: San Saba, Mason and Coleman open league play with victories
San Saba 22, Johnson City 14 — Jason Everett ran for 159 yards and two touchdowns and Graden Lebow added 94 yards and a score as the Armadillos ran for all 300 of their yards in a big district win over the Eagles.
San Saba (4-2, 1-0), which didn’t attempt a pass in the victory, raced out to a 13-0 first-quarter lead and carried it into halftime, before holding off a Johnson City rally in the second half.
DISTRICT 4-2A DI WEEK 7 REPORT: Ballinger rallies past Forsan in thriller; Colorado City, Ozona also win
Ballinger 40, Forsan 36 — Wyatt Clemens passed for 313 yards and four touchdowns, hitting Hunter Kresta nine times for 163 yards and two of those scores to lead the Bearcats to a thrilling win over the previously unbeaten Buffaloes.
Clemens also ran for 74 yards and another TD as Ballinger (5-1, 2-0) amassed 482 yards of total offense. Pierson Nord (7-81 receiving) and Brody Wilde (2-46) also caught scoring passes for the Bearcats, who also got a rushing TD run from Malachi Bentley.
DISTRICT 6-2A DII WEEK 7 REPORT: Haskell, Seymour, Windthorst fighting for title
Haskell 92, Munday 48 — Haskell’s insane level of offensive production continued in an important district win over Munday.
Haegan Pinkerton threw for 264 yards and five TDs and rushed for 179 yards and three more scores to lift the Indians (4-2, 2-0) who are in the thick of the district title chase.
Munday fell to 5-2 and 1-2.
DISTRICT 7-2A DII WEEK 7 REPORT: Goldthwaite, Stamford on collision course
Goldthwaite 63, Hamlin 0 — The Eagles raced out to a 49-0 first-half lead before cruising home for their seventh straight win against no losses.
GHS (7-0, 3-0) finished with 436 yards in total offense; Hamlin (2-5, 0-3) totaled only 29 yards on the night.
DISTRICT 5-3A DII WEEK 7 REPORT: Tolar, Hamilton score comfortable wins; Dublin, Comanche and Eastland all fall
Tolar 49, Rio Vista 13 — Briton Rice had a big day throwing the football, and Kelvin Murray continued his outstanding season on the ground to lead the Rattlers to a convincing win over the Eagles.
With his team leading 20-7 at halftime, Murray ran for a pair of third-quarter TDs to push Tolar’s lead to 35-7 by the start of the fourth quarter. And Rice capped a productive night with a fourth-quarter touchdown pass to make it a 42-13 game, before Tanner Emery capped the scoring with a rushing TD.
DISTRICT 3-2A DII WEEK 7 REPORT: Plowboys win second straight
Roscoe 48, Ralls 6 — Roscoe (2-4, 1-0) won its second straight game after an 0-4 start with a victory in its district opener.
The Plowboys amassed 385 yards in total offense, with 326 of that coming through the air from Aydin Cruces, who threw five TD passes.
Ralls fell to 1-5 and 0-1.
DISTRICT 3-3A DII WEEK 7 REPORT: Stanton blasts Anthony; Coahoma takes care of business against Alpine
Stanton 77, Anthony 0 — Karter Barrera (4-105 rushing), Vayden Pastrana (6-95) and Nicholas Isemann (5-75) all ran for two touchdowns to lead a 539-yard rushing effort as the Buffaloes blasted the Wildcats to open league play.
Eight different players ran for at least 40 yards for Stanton (2-4, 1-0), which also got rushing TDs from Hagan Hale (3-60), Zekeriah Trevino (3-51), Luis Anaya (6-41) and Jett Rivas (2-19) in the win.
DISTRICT 12-4A DI WEEK 7 REPORT: Stephenville, Burnet and Jayton win openers
Stephenville 35, Lampasas 14 — Trot Jordan threw for 291 yards and three scores and rushed for 23 yards and two more TDs as the Yellow Jackets defeated Lampasas.
The ‘Jackets improved to 6-0 and 1-0; Lampasas dropped to 2-4 and 0-1.
DISTRICT 3-3A DI WEEK 7 REPORT: Wall, Early score lopsided wins to open league play
Wall 50, Llano 14 — Gunner King passed for 292 yards and five touchdowns while Hudson Surber received for 140 yards and three scores to lift the Hawks to a blowout win over the Yellowjackets.
Caden Sturm (19-106, 1TD rushing) and Evan Boehle (5-71, 1 TD receiving) also had productive games for Wall (6-1, 1-0), which built a 36-0 led by halftime and took a shutout into the fourth quarter.
DISTRICT 4-4A DII WEEK 7 REPORT: Mineral Wells, Graham pick up district wins; Brock tops Glen Rose in nondistrict action
Mineral Wells 27, Iowa Park 24 — Jordan Johnson ran for two touchdowns, and Javon Johnson passed for one TD and ran for another to lift the Rams to a thrilling win over the Hawks.
Mineral Wells (6-0, 1-0) raced out to a 20-9 halftime lead and held off a second-comeback by Iowa Park, which narrowed a 27-17 deficit to 27-24 by the first minute of the final period.
DISTRICT 2-3A DI WEEK 7 REPORT: Clyde, Sweetwater, Jim Ned all win
Clyde 64, Odessa Compass Academy 7 — At 6-0 and 1-0, Clyde is one win away from having at least seven wins in back-to-back seasons for the first time in a decade.
The last time the Bulldogs achieved this was under Rocky Smart in 2015 and 2016.
DISTRICT 2-4A DII WEEK 7 REPORT: Pecos rallies past Big Spring; Monahans pulls away from Snyder
Pecos 33, Big Spring 24 — The Eagles outscored the Steers 26-14 over the final three quarters to rally for a two-score win in the district opener for both teams.
Pecos (4-2, 1-0), which ran for two touchdowns, passed for two touchdowns and hit a pair of field goals, pulled ahead 20-17 by halftime and extended that advantage to 30-24 by the start of the fourth quarter.
DISTRICT 5-2A DI WEEK 7 REPORT: Hico, Cisco and De Leon win openers
Hico 51, Abilene TLCA 6 — Tyler Rainwater rushed for 224 yards and three scores and threw for 154 yards and two more scores to lead the Tigers over TLCA.
Hico (6-0, 1-0) finished with 582 yards in total offense.
DISTRICT 4-3A DII WEEK 7 REPORT: Breckenridge, Holliday, Jacksboro win districtr openers
Breckenridge 55, Wichita Falls City View 23 — The Buckaroos (1-5, 1-0) rallied from a 23-13 halftime deficit with 42 unanswered points in a huge second half to earn their first win of 2026.
Breckenridge will face a far tougher test next week when it plays host to Jacksboro (5-1, 1-0) and former BHS coach Casey Hubble.